UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) is Stokes Capital Advisors LLC’s 9th Largest Position

Stokes Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (NYSE:UNH) by 6.0% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 20,455 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,153 shares during the period. UnitedHealth Group accounts for approximately 2.7% of Stokes Capital Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. Stokes Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in UnitedHealth Group were worth $10,713,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital & Planning LLC boosted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 19.2% during the 4th quarter. Capital & Planning LLC now owns 491 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 79 shares during the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 176.2% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 44,249 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $22,384,000 after purchasing an additional 28,231 shares during the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new stake in shares of UnitedHealth Group during the 4th quarter worth about $27,233,000. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 137.1% in the fourth quarter. Revolve Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,019 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $2,033,000 after acquiring an additional 2,324 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Silver Oak Securities Incorporated boosted its position in shares of UnitedHealth Group by 24.0% in the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 2,878 shares of the healthcare conglomerate’s stock worth $1,462,000 after acquiring an additional 557 shares during the last quarter. 87.86% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

UnitedHealth Group Stock Up 2.5%

UNH stock opened at $303.24 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.91. UnitedHealth Group Incorporated has a 1-year low of $248.88 and a 1-year high of $630.73. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $409.03 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $484.21. The firm has a market cap of $275.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.56, a PEG ratio of 1.37 and a beta of 0.44.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 17th. The healthcare conglomerate reported $7.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $7.29 by ($0.09). UnitedHealth Group had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 26.69%. The business had revenue of $109.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $111.56 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $6.91 EPS. Research analysts predict that UnitedHealth Group Incorporated will post 29.54 EPS for the current year.

UnitedHealth Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 24th. Investors of record on Monday, June 16th will be issued a $2.21 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 16th. This represents a $8.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.92%. This is an increase from UnitedHealth Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $2.10. UnitedHealth Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.02%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $525.00 to $405.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of UnitedHealth Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $552.00 to $353.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday. Wolfe Research cut their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $501.00 to $390.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 20th. Finally, KeyCorp cut their price target on shares of UnitedHealth Group from $450.00 to $400.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $428.43.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Stephen J. Hemsley acquired 86,700 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $288.57 per share, with a total value of $25,019,019.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now directly owns 679,493 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $196,081,295.01. This trade represents a 14.63% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO John F. Rex acquired 17,175 shares of UnitedHealth Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 16th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $291.12 per share, with a total value of $4,999,986.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer now directly owns 203,796 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $59,329,091.52. This trade represents a 9.20% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased 109,408 shares of company stock valued at $31,607,768 over the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

UnitedHealth Group Profile

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated operates as a diversified health care company in the United States. The company operates through four segments: UnitedHealthcare, Optum Health, Optum Insight, and Optum Rx. The UnitedHealthcare segment offers consumer-oriented health benefit plans and services for national employers, public sector employers, mid-sized employers, small businesses, and individuals; health care coverage, and health and well-being services to individuals age 50 and older addressing their needs; Medicaid plans, children's health insurance and health care programs; and health and dental benefits, and hospital and clinical services, as well as health care benefits products and services to state programs caring for the economically disadvantaged, medically underserved, and those without the benefit of employer-funded health care coverage.